Devices for grasping and/or clamping tissue between a pair of opposed jaw members are widely used in a variety of surgical procedures. Depending upon the procedure to be performed, it may be difficult to both gain access to and properly clamp the desired tissue due to the angle of the jaws with respect to the shaft to which they are attached. Consequently, surgical graspers have been developed in which the jaws are pivotally secured to the shaft so that the jaw assembly may be articulated with regard to the shaft. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,507,773.
One complication in providing for articulating jaws on a grasper is providing an actuation mechanism to move the jaws between the open and closed positions. Such an actuation mechanism must function reliably without undue interference with the articulation joint, and it is preferred that the actuation mechanism not require enlargement of the cross-sectional area of the grasper shaft.
It is also desirable in various procedures for the jaws to provide a constant, predetermined clamping pressure that is not dependent upon the force the surgeon applies to the grasper handle. This is of particular significance where the jaws of the grasper include RF energy electrodes for ablating or cauterizing tissue. In such devices a uniform, consistent clamping pressure results in a more predictable and even application of electrosurgical current to the clamped tissue.
Accordingly, it is one object of the present invention to provide a tissue graspers or clamping device whose jaws are pivotable with respect to their supporting shaft so that the surgeon may more easily grasp the desired tissue.
It is also an object of another aspect of the present invention to provide a tissue grasper or clamping device with articulatable jaws that allows control of the maximum pressure that is applied to the tissue held between the jaws.
It is a further object to provide a tissue grasper with articulatable jaws wherein the actuation mechanism for the jaws is sufficiently small that the grasper shaft can accommodate electrical conductors, sensors, and the like in addition to the actuation mechanism without necessitating undue enlargement of the cross-section of the grasper shaft.
These objects are by way of example and not limitation of the invention claimed. As claimed, the invention may address one or more of the above objects or may address other concerns or achieve other benefits not set forth above.